THE MAGPIE SALUTE

Client Biography

Old friends pass through our lives
similar to characters in a time-worn, dog-eared novel.

As we page through life, they
return to walk alongside of us on bold new adventures at all the right moments.
Such is the story of THE MAGPIE
SALUTE. For as much as the group represents a musical union of
swaggering rock ‘n’ roll, psychedelic blues, and campfire-worthy storytelling,
it also marks a reunion of musicians whose paths twisted and turned right back
to each other.

Pulled together by guitarist Rich Robinson, it continued a storyline
he began in the Black Crowes with guitarist Marc Ford and bassist Sven
Pipien. Meanwhile, vocalist John
Hogg shared Hookah Brown with Robinson
as keyboardist Matt Slocum and
drummer Joe Magistro both joined him
for solo records and tours over the years.

Now, these six individuals conjure
magic on their full-length debut of original material, High Water I[Mascot/Eagle
Rock], for 2018 with High Water II to come in 2019.

“It’s the recontextualization of playing with
one another,” Robinson states. “When
I was putting this thing together, I was thinking about how even though we may
not have played for almost a decade, it just comes back immediately. The
chemistry is unexplainable. Of course, I’m the same guy who played with the
Black Crowes and wrote all of those songs, but this is a different context for
myself, Marc, and Sven. It’s the convergence of three different worlds and eras
for me. We’re all here together in this one place. Simultaneously, it’s amazing
for Marc and Sven to play with Joe and Matt and John to be in the middle of it
all. For me, that was really cool to witness. This is what I wanted to do.”

“The more time we spend together,
the more I realize how much of my life is involved with Rich,” Ford reveals. “This is probably the
best band I’ve ever been in. As a player, it challenges me. There’s something
beyond us that we’re agreeing with. This music wants us to be a part of it.
Rich and I just agreed that whatever it took for us to drop our bullshit—so be
it. That way, we could let this happen in our lives. It’s better when we’re
together than when we’re not. We’re better friends than we’ve ever been. I’ve
learned more about him in the last year than I had in the past thirty. Rich and
I have been able to pick up this fragmented broken piece of a very bizarre life
together and unite as grown men and say, ‘Wow,
that was something. Let’s see what we can do with it.’"

“We’re all
very aware of this position we’re in,” adds Hogg. “Rich and Marc have this intense and long history together in
quite a public way. At the same time, you’ve got Sven who’s been in the band
forever, and Joe has been with Rich for 15 years. I have this history with
Rich. I won’t lie; it’s all quite unusual,” he laughs, “I’m working with the
greatest musicians I’ve ever worked with. The dynamic is powerful and positive.
There’s been a number of long journeys that suddenly all coalesce.”

As those roads converged, THE MAGPIE SALUTE first took flight in 2016 when Robinson assembled the original
ten-piece incarnation for a now seminal Woodstock gig. The group went on to
sell out four consecutive nights at The Gramercy in January 2017 chronicled with a historic Guitar Player cover featuring the two
six-stringers. By the top of 2018,
the band delivered a total of 77 seismic sets worldwide comprised of a 170-song
repertoire of covers, Crowes’ tunes, and solo material. Acclaim came from Guitar World, Relix, and more, while Rolling
Stone summed it up succinctly as “Explosive.”
They unveiled their debut, The Magpie Salute (Live), topped off by
one original “Omission.” By the time they retreated to Dark Horse Studios in Nashville
with Robinson in the producer’s
chair, the vision crystallized with the six-person
lineup.

“Touring as a ten-piece is cool,
but it’s more like a revue,” admits Robinson.
“Everything on stage was great. When you’re ready to record, there’s a lot of
space that needs to be considered though. We didn’t want it to get too chaotic
or too hard to sift through. The core was really important and needed to shine
as a strong six-piece. It was great to build something new last year. We were
born in a sense. Now, we’re working towards something as a tight unit."

“We bashed
out all of the framework on tour,” continues Ford. “When we got off the road,
we focused and let it really shine.”

THE MAGPIE SALUTE are launching High
Water Iwith “Send Me An Omen.” The twang of a
hummable riff roars under Hogg’s
towering delivery before spiraling into an entrancing melody punctuated by gang
harmonies and butter smooth solos.

“It’s a rock ‘n’ roll song,” asserts
Robinson. “It’s about a relationship
that’s not working. By the time it gets to the chorus, there’s a happier
singalong juxtaposed to John’s lyrics. I enjoy messing around with songs that
tow the line between dark and light.”

“Mary The Gypsy” charges ahead on bombastic drums and thick guitars
that give way to an anti-establishment chant. “It’s a charge to get rid of this
false positive corporate mentality of cynically looking at creators,” sighs Robinson. “It’s the same thing it’s
always been. Bankers are running this industry and trying to tell artists how
to make money. Why not just create what comes naturally to you?”

A rustle of acoustic strumming
opens the floodgates on “High Water”
as the vocal vulnerability underscores unrest teeming just beneath the surface.
“It touches on the whole overarching theme of the record,” Robinson goes on. “It’s discussing humanity and everything we’re
going through.”

The group spreads its wings on the
sweeping “Sister Moon.” “That came
from John and I staying in a house together,” recalls Ford. “We lived together 24 hours a day for ten days. We would just
sit, poke at the fire, and tell stories. Many ideas came from that. That’s how ‘Sister
Moon’ started. It’s so vibe-y and beautiful. John and I had never met before. The
track is like us meeting.”

Elsewhere, the plaintive and
poignant “Colorblind” details Hogg’s perspective on growing up of
mixed African and Swedish descent. “It was quite complicated being somebody of
mixed race when I was young in London,” remarks the singer. “I was looking at some
of the feelings I experienced. In a time where race and gender issues are
getting inflamed, it’s current to think on what this means.”

The slow burn of drums and string
plucks swings towards a dramatic close on the sparse, yet soulful “Open Up.”

“That one looks inward,” Robinson explains. “Think of someone
who has been closed off for an entire lifetime. This person inhabits one place.
Finally, the world opens up. It’s a cool ending.”

In many ways, the name reflects the
spirit of THE MAGPIE SALUTE.

“I’ve always loved the element of
crows, but they have a dark connotation,” Robinson
elaborates. “Magpies are revered by ancient and indigenous cultures around the
world, because they walk that bridge between dark and light. A magpie is also a
cousin to a crow. This band was a cousin to the Crowes last year. Now, there’s
a superstition where you salute a magpie if you see him. It supposedly wards
off bad spirits. A salute means, ‘We come
in peace.’ That’s our goal. We
just want to play together. It made sense.”

In the end, THE MAGPIE SALUTE’s story is just beginning to get good.

Baptized by High Water, these friends start anew.

“I want people to realize it’s
something different and also a little familiar,” Robinson leaves off. “I hope they can connect it to the records
that defined their lives. Music is there to give us joy, perspective, and show
angles we haven’t seen before. I appreciate it more than ever. It’s a gift.”

“I hope listeners can be relieved
of some of their burdens by hearing us have fun and share our stories,” smiles Hogg. “That’s all I could ask for.”

Ford concludes, “Ultimately, there’s a spirit of reconciliation
over the whole thing—because we all dropped a lot of bullshit to get together
and make this music happen. There’s freedom and power in that. It’s a pretty
righteous record as a result. It’s a lot of grown men who have lived and are still
standing to bravely and truthfully tell about it.”